The History of Middle-earth (chibi version) - Part 249 - Verdict

Ulmo's reaction, like Aulë's, is taken from the Book of Lost Tales version of this story.

Nienna's thoughts are more my own interpolation: I see her as the quiet voice of conscience of the Valar, who says things which are often unwelcome to the others (but Manwë, at least, respects her moral insight).

Part 249 Verdict

Next time: Part 250: Sentence

Chibis by the now-dead website formerly known as tektek.org

Original story by and copyright to J R R Tolkien, ed. C Tolkien: Primarily based on the Silmarillion, but incorporating ideas from the 12-volume History of Middle Earth series.

On a tangent, it is actually my headcanon that the weather in Aman (at least the inhabited parts around Valmar and Tirion) is always regular and predictable and pleasant; just enough sun, just enough rain - except that sometimes Ossë sends a massive unpredicted storm roaring up the Bay of Eldamar, being funnelled inwards until it lashes against the Pelóri and howls through the Calacirya... just, in his words, to "Shake things up a bit".

The other Valar tell Ulmo to have a word with him about it, but somehow it always slips Ulmo's mind.

Man, that is a weird coincidence, in my headcanon the bay of Eldamar is also occasionally plagued by unpredictable stroms (only it's 'natural' climate in my headcanon rather than Osse, though that's an excellent idea!)I guess it's just really easy to picture the massive bay of Eldamar as the Gulf of Mexico counterpart to Middle Earth's 'Europe'.

Also I agree on your interpretation of Nienna, of all the Valier she rocks the most for exactly that reason.

Since Manwë is the Lord of Winds I imagine the wind in Valinor does exactly what he tells it to do (including when it blows clouds across the sky and when it clears them). Ossë disrupts that regular pattern.

Since Tirion is on the equator, I see this as meaning it rains very heavily for an hour or two every morning, regular as clockwork, then it's sunny the rest of the day. The Noldor have made all sorts of channels and cascades and fountains to handle the rainwater run-off in a way that's both practical and beautiful.

As for Nienna - some may think of her as soppy and wet, but then you realise that the Maia she personally trained was Gandalf - and while he's certainly compassionate and merciful, he can be quite acerbic and impatient as well! I can see Nienna being quite brisk and efficient: compassionate in the way a nurse, for example, might be.